Speak of the Devil
by Eccentwrit
Summary: In which Luffy is actually a devil, but nothing really changes. A story told in parts.
1. Shanks

Shanks had been a pirate for a long time. He had traversed Paradise and the New World on the ship of the greatest, Gol D. Roger. In his short life he had seen things more impossible than any man could dream. He thought the world no longer held any surprises for him, arrogantly assuming he had seen all it had to offer.

He had never expected to come across a creature like his old captain out in the East Blue of all places.

There were those who called Gol D. Roger a demon, and Shanks knew they were wrong. He had met demons, and Roger wasn't like them at all.

Roger was a Devil.

Under him, Shanks had learned many things about the world and how it worked. One of most important lessons he had learned under Roger was that the world was full of monsters, so to always be prepared for whatever you may find out there.

The second most important lesson Shanks had learned was never to agree to anything unless you knew exactly _what_ you were striking a deal with.

Those old lesson became very relevant just hours after Shanks and his crew docked at a small port town on Dawn Island.

The journey from the Grand Line to the East Blue had been harrowing, to say the least. Though all of his men were experienced veterans of the turbulent seas, even they found navigating the Grand Line exhausting on a good day, so Shanks felt they were well-deserving of a good vacation. And what better place to kick back and relax than the most peaceful sea in the world?

When they first set eyes on Dawn Island, the entire crew had let out a hearty cheer (lead by Shanks himself of course) and enthusiastically discussed just how many bars they'd manage to drink dry before they set off again.

Of course, there was always the risk that the inhabitants of the island would be less than welcoming of pirates, but considering where they were, that possibility was more of a nuisance than a threat.

And at first, it looked like they wouldn't exactly be getting a friendly greeting from the locals. To Shanks it certainly seemed that way, if the way the civilians were avoiding eye contact and taking shelter in the closest building was any indication.

"Are you guys pirates?"

Shanks did not jump, thank you very much, and he definitely hadn't just been snuck up on by a little kid in a no-name village. His posture relaxed as he assessed the newcomer, a young boy who looked to be about six or seven. Messy black hair. Short for his age. Harmless.

"Why do you wanna know?" Shanks sneered, leaning down to make a face at the boy.

The kid seemed unfazed by Shanks' taunting, answering honestly "'Cause I think pirates are cool, and you guys have a ship and look really cool so are you pirates?" Wide eyes looked up at him with barely contained excitement.

 _Well_. Shanks stared at the boy, mildly surprised. _That's not something you hear everyday,_ _especially around here_. He drew himself up, throwing a haughty smirk to the kid. He was gonna have a little fun. "I'm the great pirate captain, Red-Haired Shanks!" He declared boldly. "Me and my bloodthirsty men have landed here looking for booze and treasure, so hand over everything you've got or else!" Shanks threatened, giving the small child his most menacing look. The boy's eyes grew wide. _Any moment now, and he's gonna run away._ Shanks' anticipation escalated as he felt his crew come up behind him, no doubt making for an impressive sight. The kid looked from Shanks, to his crew, then back at Shanks.

"So cool!" The kid shouted in glee. A massive grin split his face in half as he bounced on the balls of his feet, too overcome to hold still.

"Wait, what?" Shanks flailed.

"Aw man, you guys must be really strong!" The boy said excitedly. "Come on, I'll show you around!" He declared, grabbing Shanks' arm and pulling him down the village streets. Shanks, too caught off guard to resist, followed behind the fearless child in slight shock. His crew followed faithfully, laughing at his expense. Belatedly, he realized the kid was still talking. "-and I dunno about treasure, but I know where to find booze. Everyone says Makino has the best drinks." Suddenly the boy stopped, and turned to Shanks with a comically serious look on his face. "I can take you there, but you gotta promise to be my friend, okay?" He said.

Shanks eyed the peculiar little child. The kid stared back. Shanks scoffed. "Yeah, sure kid. We'll be friends." Whatever floats the kid's boat, it didn't really matter to him. Though he doubted the boy had any idea just who he'd asked to befriend.

You'd've thought it was the kid's birthday the way he lit up at Shank's agreement.

"Really!?" He squeaked. "Shishishi! That's awesome! I'm Luffy!" The boy- no, Luffy- jumped into action. "Now come on Shanks! I'll take you to Makino's!" Luffy proclaimed, once more taking Shanks' hand and leading (pulling) him down the street. Shanks caught Ben's eye and gave a sort of helpless shrug. _This was a weird kid, but hey, booze_. Ben just rolled his eyes in response, more than used to his Captain's habit of attracting the strangest people.

Luffy brought them all the way to the other end of the town, stopping at a saloon-style establishment that proudly proclaimed 'Party's Bar' in bold letters above the door. _Very promising_. Shanks approved.

"Makino! Makino!" Luffy called out, rushing inside the building. The Red-Hair Pirates followed after, and Shanks couldn't deny the appreciative look he gave the very beautiful woman tending the bar- the infamous Makino. It appeared Luffy would shape up to be a pretty good friend after all, if he kept escorting them to lovely ladies like this more often.

Makino, to her credit, took the arrival of dozens of pirates in stride. "Luffy, who are all these people?" She questioned, even as she set out tankards for them to enjoy. She didn't hesitate or act uncomfortable in the slightest, going so far as to smile when she set each brimming mug down on the polished tables they took their place at.

Luffy grinned up at her. "This is Shanks and his crew! They're pirates! And my friends!" He told her, hopping up into one of the bar stools. His tiny legs swung back and forth, kicking out in happiness as he drank from the glass of juice Makino left for him.

"Is that so?" Makino mused, looking the pirate gang over.

Shanks wasn't really paying anymore attention at this point, too absorbed in the drink in front of him to care about the conversation taking place between the boy and the bartender, pretty as she was.

"Yeah! I made a deal to bring them here! And it worked!"

Shanks stiffened in his seat, slowly setting his drink back onto the bar. Listening to his gut had saved his life many times at sea, and right now his gut was telling him something was very, very wrong. _But what?_

It was something Luffy said, something niggling in the back of his mind.

I made a deal to bring them here.

I made a deal.

I made a _Deal_.

Dread infused Shanks being, and he felt himself going very still. His crew picked up on his unease, the din of conversation dying before it could properly be born as they waited for a signal from their Captain.

"What did you say your name was again?" Shanks cautiously asked the boy, who seemed oblivious to the tense atmosphere that had bloomed around them.

Luffy gave another blinding grin, and Shanks braced for impact.

"Shishishi! I'm Luffy! Monkey D. Luffy!" He declared.

Shanks felt the bottom of his stomach drop out.

Monkey D. Luffy.

Monkey D.

D.

Devil.

…

Fuck.

The bar was quiet following Luffy's proclamation. Makino hovered close by Luffy, ready to snatch the child up at a moment's notice should the pirates become hostile.

The Red-Hair Pirates exchanged significant glances with each other. Many of them had been fortunate enough to never run into a devil themselves, but they _all_ knew the stories about them, and all of them had dealt with their legacies.

Devils, as far as the majority of the world was concerned, weren't real- bedtime stories meant to scare children into listening to their parents and following the rules. As you'd get older the stories would change to unlucky folk who would wish for fame or power, and end up selling their souls in exchange for their desires, only to lose it all when said devil came to collect.

But there was another part of the myth. It was said that each devil had a unique and extraordinary power. If you killed one, then you could steal that power for yourself.

Allegedly this was the origin of the Devil Fruits; they were remnants of devils that had passed, their power turned into legacies that could be passed on from mortal to mortal.

Shanks was tense as he addressed the devil before him. "What did I agree to? What was the Deal?" He said quietly, his straw hat casting a shadow over his eyes.

Luffy blinked up at him. He finally seemed to pick up on the tension radiating from the pirate captain and summarily dismissed it. "Well, you wanted me to take you here, right? So I did. That's the Deal." Luffy told him matter-of-factly.

Shanks went cold. So many years of being careful on the Grand Line, doing everything in his power to take care of his crew, and he threw it all away for some booze 'cause he got careless. So much for listening to Roger's lessons.

He squared his shoulders. He might've screwed up, but this wasn't over. Roger had given all of his crew training on what to do if they got tricked into selling their souls to devils less friendly than Roger himself. It would take some crafty maneuvering to win his soul back from Luffy, but Shanks was confident he could manage it. After all, even if he was a devil, Luffy was still a kid.

But first he needed to lay some groundwork. "Yes I suppose you did hold up your end." Shanks started, treading carefully. He didn't want the kid to get upset and then have to worry about the devil's powers coming into play on top of trying to get out of this deal. "I have to admit that was a good deal." Roger had said most devils were vain, and a bit of flattery would go far in convincing the kid to dissolve the contract.

Roger knew what he was talking about, because the words had barely left Shanks' mouth before the kid was bouncing up and down, obviously pleased with himself. "Yeah I know! I'm really happy it worked too! I wasn't sure I could make Deals with so many!" Luffy giggled.

'So many'? That wasn't right. Shanks had been the only one to talk to the boy. Luffy must be talking about other deals. He couldn't mean-

Shanks seized Luffy by the shoulders. Makino made an aborted attempt to come to Luffy's aid, but hesitated when she realized the pirate captain wasn't harming him. "What do you mean 'so many'? I'm the only one you made a Deal with right? My crew never even spoke with you!" He demanded wide-eyed.

Luffy seemed startled by the sudden questions, but just shrugged it off. "Well," he began, scratching at his nose, "I did make a deal with all of you guys."

It had to be some kind of trick. Devils were crafty and there was no way Shanks could've bartered away the lives of his own crew no matter how careless he had been. "How?" Shanks asked, his voice echoing with his strength and determination. The Red-Hair Pirates would not fall in some no-name village in the East Blue.

Luffy, naturally, was unfazed, even bothering to look at Shanks like he was crazy. "You're the captain aren't you? You speak for the whole crew for every other decision. Deals count too. Duh."

Shanks clenched his fists, still holding on tightly to Luffy. "Hey, now, be reasonable. My crew didn't agree to anything. _I_ was the one who made the deal. Only me. You can't hold them responsible." Shanks told him harshly and a little desperate, going so far as to shake Luffy.

Luffy's eyes grew wide and tears began to bubble up. He sniffed. His chin began to wobble.

Internally Shanks began to curse. So much for schmoozing the devil into releasing them from their Deal. But the nice guy attitude was over the minute his friends, his crew, were threatened. They were pirates; they didn't do this because it was fun or easy. He would find another way.

"Look," Shanks began. He ruined his chances to charm his way out of this mess, and he wasn't above begging now to fix it. It was his duty as Captain to do everything in his power to protect his crew. "I'll go with you without a fight. Whatever you want to do with my soul I won't protest. I'll be your servant, your… slave." Immediately his crew began to cause a commotion at that idea. He was touched by their concern… but... he needed to be the one to set things to rights. Even if it meant forfeiting himself in the process. Shanks winced and looked away. "If that's what you want I'll do it. All I ask is that you let my men go. Don't take their freedom. Don't make them pay for my mistakes." By the end his voice was barely above a whisper. He still wouldn't meet Luffy's eyes.

Luffy sniffed again, scrubbing away his tears before they could fall. His brow furrowed, his hurt fading into confusion.

Luffy blinked at Shanks.

He blinked again.

"Eh?! Your soul? What are you talking about Shanks?" Luffy burst out, his head tilting to the side as if the action would make sense of the pirate captain.

Shanks' head snapped up. "What do you mean what am I talking about?! You tricked us into making a Deal with you! You help us and in return you get to claim our souls! That's how Deals work isn't it?!"

"No!" Luffy jumped back, out of Shanks' grasp. "I don't want your souls. What would I do with those?" He glared at Shanks like he was stupid.

Shanks visibly faltered and stared at Luffy in disbelief. "Wait, if the deal wasn't for our souls then what _was_ it for?" He had never heard of a devil _not_ asking for a soul in their deals. What could this kid _possibly_ want instead? Thousands of possibilities flashed through Shanks' head, each one more ridiculous and grand than the last.

Luffy was giving him that look again, the one that said he thought Shanks wasn't very smart. "You guys said you'd be my friends, remember?"

"Is that it?" Shanks said.

"Well, yeah. I don't want anything else." Luffy said plainly.

"Why?"

Luffy flushed and looked at the floor, shifting his weight from foot to foot. "It's just that the people here are scared of Gramps, so they don't like being around me. I thought that if I made a Deal with you guys then you'd _have_ to be my friends and I wouldn't be alone anymore." Behind him the bartender let out a soft gasp, covering her mouth in shock. "And I'm right, aren't I Shanks? You made a Deal so now you gotta!" Luffy added angrily.

Against his will, Shanks felt his heart go out to the boy. All in all the damage could have been much worse. As it was, he now knew exactly what he needed to do to get out of this mess.

He put a hand on Luffy's shoulder. "Look kid, you don't need to make Deals to make friends." He told Luffy gently.

"Eh? But then how else am I supposed to get friends?" Luffy asked, biting the inside of his cheek as he tried to figure it out.

Shanks sighed. This was not how he had expected to spend his time in the East Blue. "Just be yourself and the rest will come. As long as you care about the friends you do have you have nothing to worry about. But you can't force someone to like you or want to be your friend. You can't decide that for yourself." He told Luffy sternly. Then Shanks relaxed. "And don't worry about not having friends right now. No one is alone forever." He told him.

"Oh. Okay. I think I get it." Luffy said. He looked at Shanks and grinned sheepishly. "I guess this means I should break my Deal with you guys, right?" Shanks nodded "Okay then." Luffy placed his hands on his hips and glared up at Shanks. "But afterwards you gotta be my friends, alright!"

Shanks let out a strained laugh. This kid really wasn't getting it, but whatever. Close enough. "Sure, kid. Whatever you say. Just as long as it's not part of a Deal." Shanks said.

Luffy gave a sharp nod. "There, it's done!"

Shanks sagged when the heavy atmosphere lifted. "Good. That's good." That had been too close for comfort. He wouldn't underestimate the East Blue again.

Shanks straightened up, turning around to shoot his crew two thumbs up for the 'all clear'. He watched them relax and slowly turn back to their drinks and merrymaking. To think he'd come so close to losing them. Shanks eyed the boy that was the root of the trouble. Luffy was watching him, waiting. Shanks stuck his tongue out at him. "Besides, kids are too young to be making Deals anyways. Leave that to the grown-ups." He teased.

Luffy sputtered in outrage. "I'm not a kid!" He shouted at Shanks. "I'm a grown-up too!"

Shanks scoffed. "Are not. Come on, what are you, five?"

"I'm _six_." Luffy corrected. "So I'm old enough to be a grown-up."

Shanks rolled his eyes. Clearly he'd been giving Luffy's intelligence too much credit. "You're still a kid at six, idiot."

But Luffy shook his head vehemently. "Nu-uh. I'm a grown-up cause little kids have to have people take care of them, and nobody takes care of me but me. So that makes me a grown-up and _not_ a kid."

Shanks was taken aback. That was not a response he had been expecting to get from Luffy. Damn if he didn't sympathize with the boy.

"Look, Luffy." He said, slinging his arm around the child- because despite what he thought, Luffy was definitely still a child. "You aren't alone any more. From now on my crew and I will look after you for as long as we're here." At his words Yasopp and Lucky Roo led the crew into a hearty cheer while Ben wore that smile that Shanks just _knew_ meant he was laughing at him. Apparently his crew was made of nosey bastards who had been listening in the whole time. "Because we're friends now, and that's what friends do. We look after each other no matter what." Out of the corner of his eye Shanks could see the others nodding in agreement.

Luffy gazed at Shanks in awe. "No matter what…"


	2. Ace

Portgas D. Ace was not having a great week.

Shitty Gramps had left another boy in Dadan's care so that Ace would have a friend. As if Sabo wasn't good enough.

Ace hated him. Luffy, that is.

It wasn't that Luffy was irritatingly persistent, which he was. It wasn't that Luffy was a spoiled crybaby either, which he also was.

No, what made Ace hate the younger boy was that, despite appearances, Luffy was every inch the devil Ace was. And he never had to suffer for it.

Luffy acted so carefree all the time and it was grating. He didn't realize that anyone who knew what he was would hate him. The idiot didn't know that the world considered his kind an abomination to destroy unless they sold their freedom to become a military dog like Gramps had.

Devils were friendless and cursed and Ace hated that Luffy didn't seem care.

Even Sabo, the closest thing Ace had to a best friend, was no exception. Not that Ace had told him anything, per se. But Sabo was smart, Ace was sure he'd figure it out eventually. And when he did, he'd leave him, Ace was sure.

There really wasn't a way to hide the natural unease people felt around devils, after all. It drove everyone away in the end. Even Dadan couldn't bare to be around Ace for more than a few hours, and she had practically raised him!

But Ace was tough. He didn't need anybody. He didn't.

Luffy didn't get that though, and kept following Ace day after day no matter what Ace did to dissuade him. It was like the kid didn't realize even devils had a hard time being around other devils; given how territorial they were, devils tended to avoid prolonged contact with others of their kind lest a fight break out. The only exceptions were demons and subordinates, and Ace wasn't a demon, and he certainly was _no one's_ subordinate.

And _damn_ , devils were sturdier than the average human, but nothing Ace did seemed to even leave a dent on Luffy. The idiot couldn't throw a decent punch to save his life but he sure as hell could take one.

.

..

…

…. like he proved withstanding Porchemy's torture.

Ace grimaced at the thought. It wasn't guilt. Ace definitely wasn't feeling guilty. No way. Thinking about Porchemy beating up Luffy only made Ace upset because now Ace owed the brat. That was it. Sabo could take his smug face and shove it up a creek.

Luffy was just a nuisance that just so happened to not screw up for once. It wasn't Ace's fault Porchemy was such a bastard. If Luffy had even two rocks to rub together for brains he would've just told those pirates where Ace and Sabo hid their gold! Then he would have been fine! Why keep their secret when he knew he would just end up here, in Dadan's back room, getting stitched up by Dogra and Magra!?

Ace let out a wordless cry of frustration and punched the wall next to him. It was Luffy's own fault! He should have told! Why? Why didn't he say anything!?

The room suddenly got darker and Ace whirled around in alarm, enveloped in Dadan's shadow. She looked about as maternal as Ace had ever seen her, which was to say, not very.

"He's not going to be waking up anytime soon brat, so you might as well leave. You can come back tomorrow, but I won't be having you wreck my house just 'cause you've decided to throw a tantrum." She said gruffly, casting a significant look towards the dent in the wall Ace had just made.

Ace glared at her. Like Hell was he gonna listen to her boss him around. She wasn't Gramps! If he wanted to sit here she couldn't make him leave!

Dadan had raised Ace for ten years now. She knew him better than he thought she did. So when Ace prepared to spit and snarl at her and generally make a fuss, she simply sighed and picked him up by the back of the neck like the unruly pup he was. Of course, Ace immediately protested being manhandled in such a way and twisted and contorted to bang against her side with his fists, but by now Dadan had grown immune to such things.

She opened the front door and, with a huff, tossed Ace outside.

Ace skidded against the ground. He righted himself immediately, neglecting to wipe the dirt from his face or the grass from his hair. "Hey! What was that for!" He shouted, furious.

"You need to cool off brat." Dadan told him, unaffected. "I get it. You feel guilty the other brat got hurt protecting you. Get over it. You aren't doing anyone any favors by hanging around and moping about it. You can come back tomorrow." She said, her voice ringing with finality, and slammed the door.

Ace grumbled. He wasn't feeling guilty. And he wasn't listening to Dadan because she was right, he was just gonna hang out with Sabo at the Gray Terminal for a bit because Dadan's place was being super boring. That was all.

So it really pissed him off when the first thing Sabo did was ask about Luffy.

"How's Luffy?" Sabo asked Ace the moment he got to the other boy. "Is he gonna be alright?" He asked worriedly.

Ace's scowl deepened, and for a moment Sabo looked devastated before Ace reluctantly ground out "Magra says he'll be fine."

Sabo practically glowed with relief. "That's good." He sighed. "I'm glad Luffy's gonna be okay." He said, a small smile revealed a gap where he was missing a tooth. He looked down at the ground and scuffed the toe of his boot against the dirt. "We really owe him, don't we?" He quietly said after a moment.

Ace grit his teeth. "We don't owe him anything!" He spat. "It's his own fault for being an idiot and not telling them where we hid the treasure. If he had, none of this would have happened and we wouldn't have needed to rescue him! If anything, he owes us!" He said stubbornly, crossing his arms tight.

Sabo looked at him, startled. "Still," he said, haltingly, "I think we should try and look out for Luffy from now on. I mean, we did help save his life, and you know what they say- if you save someone's life you are responsible for them."

Ace glared at him. "Of course we're gonna look after the idiot!" He snapped. "That crybaby can't do anything on his own! It's an embarrassment!" When Sabo didn't say anything, Ace looked up in confusion. "What?" He asked irritably.

"Nothing." Sabo said hurriedly. "It's just…" He trailed off, unsure.

"It's just what?" Ace scowled.

Sabo dug the tip of his boot into the ground again. "I was just wondering if you could take me to go see Luffy tomorrow." He admitted. Ace looked ready to snap at him again. Sabo pushed on. "I feel guilty that he got hurt!" He explained. "The least I could do is check on him myself."

Ace swallowed the lump in his throat. "Yeah, well, that's 'cause you're a big softie." He accused, though it lacked his usual heat. "But fine, I guess I could take you with me tomorrow." He said, faux-carelessly as he tucked his arms in closer and turned away. "I don't wanna talk about that baby-loser anymore. Let's see if there are any good scraps on the West side today." He decided abruptly.

Sabo allowed the topic change with just the barest twitch of his lips."Sure. There wasn't much last time I check there, but that was a few days ago."

Ace spent the night camped out with Sabo in his tent in the Gray Terminal. The next morning they hiked up to Dadan's house.

Sabo approached the door and politely knocked while Ace hovered behind him, scowling.

Dadan flung open the door. Half of her curly red hair had been pulled out of the tie she kept it in. There were long shadows under her eyes, and in them was a wild wide-eyed gaze only found in parents who had gotten far too little sleep. Her gaze darted around searchingly before she looked down to notice the two ten-year-olds standing in front of her.

Dadan suddenly scowled. "You're here for the other brat?" She bit out.

Sabo looked at Ace. Ace looked at Sabo. Carefully they turned to Dadan and nodded. "If you don't mind." Sabo said politely.

Dadan didn't care about Sabo's manners, barely seeming to register the strange boy's presence at all. Without turning away Dadan reached behind and flung something at Sabo, the sudden weight toppling the boy over. "You want that brat so bad? You can keep the monster." She barked at the boys who now found themselves in possession of a squirming, hyperactive, heavily-bandaged Luffy. "That devil's caused nothing but chaos ever since he woke up. He's your responsibility now." She scowled, slamming the door shut. Sabo could faintly hear something on the other side of the door that sounded suspiciously like a barricade falling into place.

Ace, on the other hand, felt like he had been doused in ice water. The dread slid down his back at the thought of how carelessly Dadan told Sabo what Luffy was. Now that Sabo knew Luffy was a devil it wouldn't take long for him to realize Ace was too.

Then Sabo would leave. He would hate Ace for keeping secrets, and he would deserve it. Ace suddenly saw all the people who decried the son of Gol D. Roger as a soulless monster, but it was Sabo's face, Sabo's voice, that said these things in his mind's eye.

He wasn't ready.

Ace's thoughts were interrupted when he was barrelled into by a seven-year-old. Ace squawked in surprise in a manner he would later deny as he found himself with an armful of Luffy to deal with, the younger boy having quite literally launched himself over to Ace from Sabo in order to give the moody boy a hug.

Ace swore and pushed the other kid off.

Except. Luffy didn't want to let go. So instead of being forcefully shoved into the dirt like Ace had planned, he watched with mounting horror as the seven-year-old's arms warped and stretched. Ace held Luffy away from him at arm's length and stared bug-eyed at the limbs that had taken on the rigidity of soft rubber. He knew Sabo was gaping at the impossibility just as much as Ace was.

It was the strangest fucking thing Ace had ever seen.

And the damn brat didn't even seem to notice.

"Eh?" Luffy said, cocking his head to the side as Ace and Sabo just stared at him blankly. Luffy turned to look behind them to see what they were looking at, but he couldn't see anything strange. "What are you doing?"

Sabo spluttered, recovering faster than Ace. "You- what- arms-stretch-how?" He babbled helplessly. Perhaps not that much recovered.

Luffy seemed surprised. "Oh!" He exclaimed, looking down to see that his arms were, indeed, stretched out from where he was still gripping Ace. "Yeah they do that." He grinned cheekily. "I'm a rubberman!"

Sabo blinked, surprised at Luffy's relaxed attitude at being a freak of nature. "So… are you a devil fruit user then?" He asked hesitantly, as if it was the only sane answer and he wasn't sure what he would do if Luffy said no.

The truth of the matter suddenly dawned on Ace, even as Luffy asked Sabo what a devil fruit was.

"What the fuck, you little brat?!" Ace spat. "There's no fucking way an idiot devil like you already got your powers!" He exclaimed, very much not at all jealous, and shook Luffy like a ragdoll.

Luffy went limp in Ace's arms, and let go of the older boy. His arms retracted with a creak and snapped into a more appropriately limb-shaped figure. Finally free, Ace dropped him on the ground.

Luffy snickered. "Wow, Ace is acting like Shanks did the first time I stretched!"

Ace choked on air. "Fuck you brat! I was just surprised that someone as lame as you could get his powers so early!" He shouted. "Besides, rubber powers suck! It's pathetic and weak just like you!" He snarled.

Luffy sprang to his feet angrily. "My powers aren't lame! They're really strong! My punches are like pistols!" He defended, fists balled at his side.

Ace scoffed. "Only pistols? That's so weak! I don't even have my powers yet, and I'm sure I can hit harder than that." He sneered.

Luffy's face was bright red. He went to yell at Ace but was stopped when Sabo asked, in a very quiet voice unlike the ten-year-old, "Ace, what's going on? What are you talking about?" He looked confused, and hurt.

Ace paled. He had forgotten Sabo was there, he had been so absorbed in Luffy. But now there would be no hiding from Sabo, and he would leave, and Ace would lose his only friend. He froze, unsure what to do, or say, or start. "Sabo…"

"It's just," Sabo started, agitated and lost, "Luffy's arms stretched and people can't _do_ that, and you're acting like it's not that weird, even though Luffy said he didn't eat a devil fruit, and you're acting like you know what's going on, and- just-," Sabo slowly got more and more worked up, until he was gripping fistfulls of his hair under his hat, "-are we even friends?" He asked, arms falling to his sides as he looked at Ace with such an expression of defeat that Ace wanted to be sick.

"I- Sabo- it's not like that! I-" Ace softly growling in frustration and kicked the dirt, not finding the words he needed. He looked up at Sabo's face and had never been more afraid in his life.

Luffy scratched at his nose, not understanding why Ace and Sabo were so upset. "My arms stretch because I'm a devil. Ace is just jealous because he's a devil too and doesn't have any cool powers like me!" He said, sticking his tongue out.

Sabo relaxed slightly, but more out of confusion than anything. "But… I wouldn't call you and Ace _devils_ ," he said hesitantly, trying to joke, "Ace isn't _that_ bad."

Ace flinched.

Sabo's slight smile dropped. "Right?" He asked Ace pleadingly. "I mean, you can't seriously be talking about _Devil_ devils." Sabo glanced between Ace and Luffy; Luffy, who unconcernedly picked his nose, and Ace, who refused to meet his eye. Sabo knew what that meant. "But that's impossible! Devil's aren't _real_. They're just a story people tell their kids to make them behave!"

"I'm real!" Luffy exclaimed, daring Sabo to disagree.

Sabo's eyes widened. "Oh." He looked at Ace. He looked at Luffy. Then he looked at Ace again. Sabo gave Ace a small, hesitant smile. "That explains a lot, actually." He said wryly.

Ace fumed. "What is that supposed to mean dumbass?!" he shouted. Didn't Sabo get it? Ace was a devil, a monster. Why wasn't he acting right?

Sabo recoiled from Ace's anger, but held his ground. "I didn't mean it like a bad thing! It's actually really cool!" He said, holding up his hands in the universal gesture for peace. He fought not to crack a grin at Ace's dumbfounded stare.

Ace let out a petulant "Humph," and crossed his arms, looking away from Sabo.

It should be said that human children are among the most mentally resilient in all the Blues. And that being the case, it didn't take long for Sabo to no longer find his friends' nature a point of interest. Within days Sabo had almost completely put the whole thing out of his mind. Almost.

"You know," he began, watching Ace and Luffy spar. Luffy flung out his arm, only for it to rebound and smack him in the face. "You never explained why Luffy's rubber."

"I'm rubber cause I can't swim!" Luffy shouted helpfully from where Ace had him in a headlock. Unfortunately it wasn't very effective, given Luffy's head simply stretched. Fortunately, Ace was fighting Luffy, so Luffy couldn't land a hit anyways.

Sabo looked to Ace to interpret Luffy's non-explanation. "Being rubber is his devil power, though it's pretty useless, like him." Ace jeered. Luffy renewed his efforts to hit Ace. Ace grit his teeth and dodged a wild swing of Luffy's arm that nearly managed to clip him on the shoulder. He huffed and grabbed the errant limb- the downside to rubber limbs was that they could easily be tied in a knot, as Ace was quick to teach Luffy.

"Devil power? Is that like a devil fruit?" Sabo asked curiously, gazing at Luffy in fond amusement more as the boy tried to untangle his arms from an impressive round turn and two half hitches knot. The he struggled the tighter it became.

Ace shrugged. "Pretty much, except Luffy's not dead."

Sabo nodded. "Uh-huh, okay," he said slowly.

Ace knew Sabo wasn't really happy with that answer, but Ace didn't have a better one for him. He didn't really understand devil power reincarnation himself, much less explain it. He was ten.

Still, he was trying to be as honest with Sabo as possible. It had been a close call, when he told Sabo what he was, and Ace just knew that if he lied to Sabo again then that would be the end of it. He could barely understand why Sabo still wanted to be around him, but Ace was trying very hard not to look at Sabo's pity too closely.

"Every devil has a special power, but it shows up whenever. I don't have mine yet, but when I do I know it's gonna be better than rubber," Ace boasted, putting his hands on his hips and looking down at Luffy. Luffy stuck his tongue out.

Sabo laughed.

Ace flinched at the sudden sound, and slowly his expression morphed into one of disbelief as Sabo kept laughing.

"Eh?! Sabo why are you laughing?!" Luffy cried from the ground. "I wanna know the joke too!" This just made Sabo laugh harder, so much so that he lost his balance and fell to the ground next to Luffy, who joined in the silliness.

Ace felt something warm and light unfurl in his chest as he watched them.

Two weeks later Ace found himself stealing a bottle of sake from Dadan. When they all drank and sealed their vow as brothers the warmth grew and settled deep in his heart.


End file.
